Providers race to offer top fee-free balance transfer cards

Growing range of cards offering fee-free balance transfers.

When it comes to 0% balance transfer credit cards, we’re pretty used to seeing providers battle it out for the crown of the longest-lasting deal on the market.

But now there’s a new strand of competition, with a number of card providers offering to waive the fee on their 0% balance transfer deals, meaning you can shift your balance completely free of charge.

0% balance transfers and fees

If you’ve got spiralling credit card debt a 0% balance transfer credit card can help you get back in control of your finances.

You get to shift your balance and freeze interest for a period, giving you some breathing room to clear what you owe without worrying about it growing any bigger.

You usually have to pay a balance transfer fee for the privilege, which is a percentage of the debt you transfer. Many cards charge around 3%, which on a £2,000 debt will amount to a £60 fee.

However some providers now offer sizeable 0% periods, with no transfer fee to worry about.

Earlier this month Halifax launched a 16-month 0% balance transfer credit card, which offers 0% balance transfers free when made within the first 90 days of account opening or 3% thereafter.

And just last week Lloyds Bank stepped up with a 13-month 0% balance transfer and purchase card, also offering transfers free if made within the first 90 days of opening the account.

Fee-free 0% balance transfer deals

Here’s a round-up of the fee-free offers on the market right now:

*£24 annual fee

As you can see Santander offers the longest fee-free deal for 0% balance transfers. In 23 months you could clear a £2,000 debt by paying just under £87 a month.

The card itself attracts an annual fee of £24, which slightly dampens its appeal as no other fee-free 0% balance transfer deal has this sort of charge, but you can get the card fee-free for a year if you have or open a 123 Current Account. It's worth noting that the 123 card also offers 0% on purchases for 23 months, as well as cashback of up to 3% depending on where you spend.

Compare fee-free 0% balance transfer deals

When it might be worth paying a fee

If your credit card debt is more significant, you probably need to consider a balance transfer deal which allows you to spread your repayments, free of interest, for longer than 23 months. In this case you will have to pay a transfer fee.

Right now you can get a whopping 36 months of 0% interest on balance transfers with the Barclaycard Platinum Balance Transfer 36-Month Credit Card (2.99% fee) and the Virgin Money Balance Transfer Credit Card (3.49% fee).

With Barclaycard’s deal, shifting a £5,000 debt will incur a fee of £149.50, but the total balance (including the fee) can be paid off in monthly instalments of £143 before you start paying interest.

If the same £5,000 debt was shifted onto the Santander 123 Credit Card, there would be no fee to pay but to clear the balance within 23 months would require monthly repayments of £217.

For a full round-up, read The best 0% balance transfer credit cards.

Finding the best deal for you

When looking for a 0% balance transfer credit card it's important to strike a balance between the length of the interest-free period on offer and the size of the balance transfer fee.

After all, you don’t want to end up paying over the odds to take control of your debt, but you also don’t want to run out of time to clear it before interest kicks in again.

However, it can be tricky to get the balancing act right as a shorter deals don't necessarily offer the lowest fees and vice versa.

One way to go about it is to work out how much you can afford to pay each month and how long it will take you to clear your balance and try and find the cheapest deal going in that range.

Compare 0% balance transfer deals

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